Page 13 of Faking It with my Bestie's Billionaire Brother

"Yeah, well, that's scary, almost being hit. There was really no other choice if I wanted to avoid getting hurt."

I shook my head at her, a smug smirk plastered on my face. "Sounds like an excuse to me."

Her lips flattened into a grim line. "Listen, while doing whatever this thing is together, are you seriously going to be such a pain in the ass the whole time?"

I barked out a laugh. "I'm afraid that being a pain in the ass is my natural state."

She narrowed her eyes on me. "You do have a distinct talent for it, Duke."

I rolled my eyes. "Why do you insist on calling me that?"

She bit back a mischievous smile, getting the same enjoyment out of riling me up that I had gotten when I had teased her. "Because it fits," she asserts.

"I fail to see how."

So, she started listing reasons off one by one on her fingers. "Arrogant, pompous, untouchable, looks like a woman's wet dream, but talks like a real woman's worst nightmare."

I took objection to the last part of her sentence. "What's wrong with the way I talk?"

"Nothing, technically, but you always find a way to get in your jabs. You just never seem to be able to resist."

I smiled at her, then. "On the contrary, I bite my tongue more often than not. Although, I do have to admit that it seems to be a little harder around you."

"Oh, I see, so you save all the words of your vitriol for me. Great, this fake engagement is going to be a lot of fun,” she scoffed. “You and I need to get something straight here, Duke. I would not be touching you with a ten-foot pole if Penny wasn't at stake here. I don't know what kind of dirty family secret you're trying to keep hidden, but if I can do something to make sure that Penny doesn't get hurt, I'll do it. But you can lay off with the superior act." I thought she was nearly going to stomp her little foot, but she seemed to have resisted the urge.

I cleared my throat to discourage the laugh I was holding back. When she raised a suspicious brow, I hastened to assure her. "Look, I don't want to argue with you. We have to remember we're on the same team here. We're doing all this to protect Penny—"

"And make you look better in the public eye," she inserted.

I nodded reluctantly. "Yes, which will protect Penny, exactly," I said, and I could see her gritting her teeth. I tried not to get so much satisfaction out of needling her, but who was I kidding? I liked annoying the crap out of this woman.

Deciding to quit while I was ahead, I informed her sternly, "Be ready by 8:30 tomorrow morning. I'll pick you up, and we will have breakfast to discuss the guidelines and expectations. Thank you for the tacos."

I watched her to ensure that she got into her building all right, even as she sputtered all kinds of insults about me under her breath.

"Hope you have a good night, Miss Moretti," I called after her, waving with my best “charming businessman” smile.

Why wasn't I surprised that smile seemed to cause a thundercloud to practically appear over her head? Once she'd entered the building, I lingered, enjoying the way her hips sashayed angrily beneath that dress. I watched until she was out of sight, and I reluctantly headed back the way I came.

There was no way this plan was just going to be a simple project. I probably would've been better off just picking any rando off the street and paying them handsomely for their time. The little run-in in the hallway at the academy had complicated things, but I couldn't say that I was completely disappointed about that.

As I made my way to a mutually agreed-upon meeting spot with Terrence, I realized, with some alarm, that I had been grinning like a fool the whole way there.

Then, the full weight of what was really happening set in. I couldn't be sure, but I couldn't help but feel like I had just jumped out of the frying pan into the fire…and I was enjoying it.

***

Not much later, I would be reminded once again just how much Ralph's little suggestion had upended everything in the last couple of days. For one thing, I'd spent all this time with Ava, and for another, I was acting out of character.

A good example of it was with my driver. Terrence and I met up when I slipped into the backseat of the car, and he started to ask, "Back home?" But then, he stopped, sniffing the air. "Forgive me, sir, but you smell like—"

"Tacos?" I filled in.

"Well, yeah. No offense meant, it actually smells kind of…good," he finished awkwardly.

I laughed. "They were delicious." I met Terrence's eyes in the rearview mirror and said, "You know, I'm still kind of hungry. You want to split some more tacos with me?"

I saw the wide grin on his face as he changed lanes, and we headed back to the taco truck.

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